Posts Tagged ‘localization’
Measurement Conversion
Unlike the United States, most of the world uses the metric system, but that is not the only reason why measurements may need to be converted in translation. Regional formats vary from country to country and product sizes also vary from country to country. As mentioned in the article "Size matters in global product marketing," IKEA in the [...]
Camay soap in Japan
Procter & Gamble, like many other international corporations, learned U.S. portrayals of women in advertising are not always socially acceptable in other countries. In her book, “Soap Opera: The Inside Story of Procter & Gamble,” author Alecia Swasy relates the result of one misguided soap commercial. “A Camay campaign pitched the [...]
Cultural Perception of Gender May Influence Localization
Sometimes cultural perception of gender relations may influence how marketing and advertising is localized for other markets. See several examples in the article "Some international ads are perceived as sexist due to different cultural norms," by Globalization Group vice president Adam Wooten. Examples include a TV commercial that seemed harmless [...]
Emergency Air Handcuffs
Emergency exit instructions translated from Spanish to English read, “Handcuff until the it collide and without loosing it pull the hatch.” How comfortable would you feel following those instructions after a crash landing? Read more airline-related translation bloopers in the article "'Airline pulp' and bad translations that can crash a [...]
International symbol, icon blunders can be avoided
Some of my European colleagues still remember when the old Macintosh operating system of the 1980s used a trash icon that Apple’s European users confused for a postal box. Why was the icon confusing? People across the globe have different cultural ideas and assumptions about what things are supposed to look like. In other countries, trash cans [...]
Export Experts Seminar on eCommerce Effectiveness Highly Useful
The World trade Center of Utah gave Adam Wooten, vice president of Globalization Group, the opportunity to speak at a seminar on global e-commerce, Wednesday, April 13, 2011. Adam has given many presentations on this topic, so the World Trade Center kindly asked him to "pinch hit" the day before after another speaker was forced to cancel. Also [...]
Airline Pulp
"Southern China Airways once distributed a snack package with the mysterious-sounding label 'Airline Pulp' and no other description. Yum – sounds tasty! This mistranslated label will probably not get the airline nominated for any airline food awards..." Read more airline-related translation bloopers in the article "'Airline pulp' and bad [...]
‘Airline pulp’ and bad translations that can crash a plane
Southern China Airways once distributed a snack package with the mysterious-sounding label “Airline Pulp” and no other description. Yum – sounds tasty! This mistranslated label will probably not get the airline nominated for any airline food awards, but it could be worse. Some in-flight mistranslations will make you laugh, but others will [...]
Food lost in translation: How authentic is that international cuisine?
Thirteen years ago, during my first month in Chile, an American friend decided to give my palette a rest from unfamiliar food and took me to a pizzeria. The proprietor was very friendly and allowed us to help assemble our own pie. Though I can not recall what toppings we chose, I definitely remember one interesting item we spotted on the menu: [...]
Why Crowdsource Translation?
If translation crowdsourcing is not free and it carries additional risks, why should companies fit to crowdsource actually proceed? For the answer and additional details on translation crowdsourcing, read Adam Wooten's column, "Can Companies Obtain Free Professional Services through Crowdsourcing?" “Free was not the point. Time was,” [...]
